Yu-Gi-Oh: Scarlet Sentinels
Chapter One
Welcome to the Blight
The sky was a strange shade of purple today. It had been green the day before, and red the day before that, but today it was a dark shade of electric purple. Quite literally electric, as the usual bolts of lightning coursed through the thick dark clouds that constantly roiled above the land, casting their flickering shadows on the wasteland below. Shadows that passed over the two shambling figures that made their way arduously across the blasted gray plains.
They were a widely differing pair. While one was tall and thin, the other was short and stout, waddling along in the wake of his longer-legged companion, whose legs moved easier through the thick crust of ash and rubble that made up the ground. The tall one was darker, skin a pale brown beneath the ragged cloak he kept clutched around his spindly body. The other was paler, his face more optimistic and less lined, blonde hair messy and clearly long uncombed. He also bore a cloak, both of them stained gray with the ashes they now trampled across. Neither of the two could be any older than eighteen.
They had but one other thing in common: Circular hunks of metal, latched around their left forearms, each about the size of a middling dinner plate. Folded beneath them were two flat blue pieces of rectangular metal, lines traced upon them indicating five rectangular spaces. The centers of these devices bore a display, lit up with the white glow of LEDs, spelling out numbers that glinted out across the dark landscape, the only visible light on the plains. The taller one's read 1700, his companion's 1300.
"Are we almost back yet, Gotam?" asked the shorter one, wheezing a bit with the effort of keeping up with the older boy.
"Nearly, I think," replied Gotam, voice tinged with the accent of his origin. Gotam was from the southern shores of India, whereas the other, Willard, was from Maine in the United States. Neither of them knew exactly where they were now. They hadn't for quite some time. "It's hard to tell out here; there aren't any landmarks in this area."
Willard squinted up at the sky, trying to find the paler section that housed the sun behind the thick clouds. "I think it's near noon. We could wait for the midday strike and then-"
"No," Gotam interrupted abruptly, cutting off his companion with a wave of the hand. "We don't know if anyone else is close by. We keep going."
"Alright, if you want," Willard acquiesced, sighing as he pulled his cloak tighter around him to ward off a chilly wind. "It keeps getting colder. Do you think winter's almost here?"
"Who can tell?" asked Gotam despondently. "It's almost impossible to tell if it's daytime, let alone the season." Willard fell quiet, sensing Gotam's bad mood. The two walked on in silence, their footprints left stark against the ash before the winds would blow over them to mask their trail once again. It was the only thing Gotam liked about The Blight: It was hard to follow those who left no trace.
After another half hour of walking, they came across a depression in the earth, ash sifting down the sides of the shallow hole occasionally. These drifting pieces of ash collected at the bottom of the gentle slopes, and atop the mound were three figures, clustered around a camp fire. Their attire was similar to Gotam's and Willard's, and they likewise had Duel Disks strapped to their arms: old models, the very oldest, in fact. The Kaibacorp models they wore were of the first generation of Duel Disk, introduced in the Battle City tournament many years before the advent of the blades of pure light that emitted from disks of the day.
The figures looked up, apprehensively raising the Duel Disks before they recognized their fellows. They were two boys and one girl. One boy was wiry, skin black, hair curled tightly against his head, his electric yellow eyes panning up to meet Gotam's pale ruby. The other boy was younger, hair dark and matted around his depressed face, barely even acknowledging his fellows arrival once he had lowered his Disk. The girl, hair a dirty blond with wide eyes of brown, rose to walk and meet them.
"Are you guys alright?" she asked, circling around behind them to wrap her arms comfortingly about their shoulders. "Did you run into any trouble? Find any cards?"
Gotam didn't reply, frowning fiercely as his gaze fell shamefully to the ground. Willard cleared his throat awkwardly. "We, uh, we found a few… It's not much though." He held out a hand, three cards clutched in his fingers. "Here, Hikari. One for each of you."
Hikari's face fell as she took the cards, turning them over to reveal three Magic cards: Two copies of the card Mooyan Curry, and one copy of Blue Medicine. "Is this all you could find?" she asked, trying to sound gentle, but her voice trembling in obvious disappointment, hands shaking.
Gotam kicked savagely at the earth, spitting up a hail of ash. "I'm afraid so," Willard admitted, hanging his head as he sat by the fire, next to the darker boy. "We found one more, but Gotam didn't want to risk me out there below a thousand. He made me take it."
"Did you find one for yourself, Gotam?" Hikari asked, looking to the boy. He shook his head, raising his Duel Disk irritably.
"I have the highest Life Points here already," he said bluntly. "I'm low priority here."
Hikari looked down at the cards, biting her lip. "Are… are you sure? Because you're still the best duelist out of all five of us… Maybe you should take a card anyway, just in-"
"Damn it, Hikari, just give Justin and Taro their cards and get some Life Points, will you?" Gotam yelled, rounding on her with anger in his eyes. "Worry about yourself, dammit, I can handle my own Life Points, okay?"
"I know, I know," Hikari hastily assured him, backing away, the cards held before her like a shield. "I just-"
A loud clap of thunder cut off her words. They all looked up at the sky, eyes widening expectantly as lightning coursed through it, thicker and thicker, until the clouds split open with a roar, bolts of electricity flying down like darts. Five flew for their crater, and before they could even move, struck their Duel Disks with a flash of light, the group averting their eyes from the glow.
As one, the number display on their Disks shuddered, and then began to fall. Willard's fell to 1200, Gotam's to 1600. The other three lost one hundred points each as well. Taro squinted through his thick hair to look at his score of 400, while Hikari and Justin grimly observed their own points' fall to 800 and 1050.
Gotam shook his arm brusquely to shake the numbness out of it. "Just give everybody their cards, okay?" he asked, moving back to the top of the pit. "Willard, did you see if any of those bolts were close to us?"
"Hard to say, Gotam, you know how bright the light is…"
Hikari quietly walked over to the tiny fire, wordlessly handing Taro the Blue Medicine card. He barely looked at it, sliding it into his Duel Disk, Life Point meter rising to read 800. Hikari and Justin took the Mooyan Curry cards, their own points rising by 200.
"We aren't going to get much farther," Taro said bleakly, staring into the fire. "Look at us, only a single attack from death."
"Shut up, Taro," said Justin quietly, looking up wearily at the violet sky.
"I'm serious, man," Taro replied shakily, baggy eyes empty and hollow. "Only a handful of points between us before the storm takes us. We're fucked, plain and simple. Specially me. I can't duel worth beans, and I'm supposed to do something with 800 measly Life Points? Forget it, I'm fucked. We're all fucked."
"You've lasted this long," Hikari assured him, with the comforting air she used whenever she talked to Taro during these frequent moments. "We've been here at least six months, and you're still here." Taro didn't reply, glaring into the flames to avoid her gaze. Hikari sighed, sitting back in a cross-legged position as she looked down at the readout on her own Duel Disk. She was so low herself… It seemed so long ago that this meter had once read 4000. That many points, it had seemed like so much. Now she knew how easy it was to be knocked down into the dregs, one of the many who shambled through The Blight, searching for the cards that would ensure the daily lightning would not drain them of their last hundred Life Points.
She leaned against Justin's side, the older boy wrapping an arm around her in assurance. They had met a month into this hell. It had just been Hikari and Taro, then, before they found Gotam. Hikari had been with Taro from the start. She had thought often they may be brother and sister. She wasn't sure. That time before The Blight was forever a haze in her mind, always just out of reach of her probing thoughts.
"Gotam? Gotam, Gotam! You need to see this." Hikari was roused by the shouting of Willard. Panicked shouting. She perked up, standing to run to Willard, who was looking with a pale face out at the wasteland that stretched all around them. She followed his gaze, and her hands flew to her mouth in horror. Approaching their hole, coming right for them, were two figures, running pell-mell straight for them like dogs to a fresh hunt. Figures with the weight of a duel disk upon their arms.
"Shit!" Gotam hissed, running down to quickly gather some small bundles, what little food they had managed to find. "They must have seen our bolts! Come on guys, we have to get out of here, now!"
Justin and Taro jumped up, reanimated by fear. They hurried towards the opposite end of the crater, pulling their cloaks tighter around them to cease their flapping in the wind. Hikari turned to follow, but stepped back to fall on the ground when a third figure appeared over the crater lip, popping up with a yell as Justin and Taro jerked back in surprise.
"Leaving so soon?" the boy, a tall, thin one with burnt orange hair and leering black eyes. "Not before I take your Life Points for myself, you aren't," he went on, raising his duel disk and clenching a fist, the wings folding out beneath it to form a long platform before him. His Life meter was visible: 2000.
"No… No, please," Hikari begged, taking a step back. She felt a hand at her back, and turned to see Gotam staring at her over his shoulder, expression stricken, worried.
"Hikari," he hissed, raising his own Duel Disk. "You help Taro and Justin. Willard and I will take these two. Maybe then we stand a chance."
Hikari bit her lip, nodding shakily. She walked across the crater, eyes locked on the boy as she raised her arm, clenching a fist to activate her own Duel Disk. The boy smiled expectantly.
"Three, eh? Well, now, this IS nice." He bowed mockingly, Duel Disk arm swept out to the side. "Name's Yamaguchi," he said by way of introduction. "Yamaguchi Kilik. What are your names? No, no, on second thought, don't tell me," he interrupted, raising a finger as Hikari opened her mouth to respond. "I'll take a guess. Dead Meat One…" he began, finger falling to point at Taro. "Dead Meat Two… and Dead Meat Three, of course!" he finished, finger falling to land on Hikari as she took her place between the boys. "Come on, I'm waiting to devour your precious Life Points! I haven't got all day!"
"Just shut up, will you?" Justin barked irately, drawing his hand even as his Duel Disk opened. "Let's just get this over with… We haven't got all day to listen to YOU."
Kilik's eyes narrowed as he appraised Justin. "Mm. Seems you still have a bit of your hope left, huh? With Life Points as low as yours, I wouldn't mouth off so much, kid." He raised his Duel Disk, drawing five cards from his deck. "C'mon, kids, let's do this!"
Hikari and Justin looked over to Taro, who took a deep breath, raising his arm and activating his own Duel Disk, looking grimly ahead as the four squared up for an ordeal that would end in at least one of them gone from The Blight. Gone from everything.
"DUEL!"
Hikari(1000)/Taro(800)/Justin(1250) vs Kilik (2000)
"The first turn is mine. I summon Jurrac Guiaba in attack mode!" Kilik threw a card down onto his Duel Disk, and from the ground issued a gout of fire. His opponents stepped back nervously as a blue and red dinosaur crawled from the earth, baring its teeth as it hissed hungrily, flames spewing up from within its maw.
Jurrac Guaiba, Level 4, FIRE Dinosaur, 1700/400
Hikari was the first to recover. She stepped forward, reaching into her hand. "When my opponent Normal Summons a monster, I summon Naturia Cosmobeet from my hand to the field!" She lowered the card onto the Duel Disk, placing it upon it sideways. Before her appeared a compacted ball of dirt, flowers growing from its top as a large pair of innocent eyes appeared upon its surface.
Naturia Cosmobeet, Level 2 Tuner, EARTH Plant, 1000/700
"A summon on my own turn? You're even greedier than I am!" Kilik sneered, waving a hand carelessly. "I play one card, face-down. I end my turn!"
"My move!" Justin yelled, drawing a card from his deck. "I summon the Tuner monster Geomancer of the Ice Barrier!" This monster was a human, draped in a blue robe and holding an octagonal mirror in one hand.
Geomancer of the Ice Barrier, Level 3 Tuner, WATER Spellcaster, 800/1200
"At least your girlfriend had the sense to put her monster in defense mode," Kilik chided obnoxiously. "What are you going to do with a weak Tuner like that without another monster to use for Synchro Summon?"
Justin rolled his eyes irritably, selecting a card from his hand. "This. By discarding one card and choosing an Attribute, I stop all monsters of that Attribute from attacking my Geomancer!" He slid the Dewdark of the Ice Barrier in his hand into his Duel Disk, and his Geomancer's mirror took on a red glow. "The Attribute I choose is Fire, so your Fire monsters can't attack me!"
For once, Kilik actually looked angry. He looked down at his deck with gritted teeth, clearly the face of a man who knew all too well that most, if not all, of his deck was composed of Fire monsters. "You prick," he grunted. Justin just smiled with satisfaction as he nodded to Taro.
The boy meekly drew a card, not even verbally declaring it was his move. "I play a monster in defense mode," he said, selecting a card and placing it on the Duel Disk face-down and sideways. An enlarged version of the card appeared in front of him, a shadowy sphere rising to represent the unknown monster that lurked beneath. "And I play one card face-down," he added, sliding a card from his hand into his Disk. "That… that ends my turn."
Hikari frowned worriedly. With 800 Life Points, Taro more than any of them risked a lot by playing any monster of his in attack mode. Hopefully he would be able to deal the finishing blow in this duel to Kilik, to take any Life Points he had remaining for himself. She had to do her best to set him up to do that.
"My turn," she said, raising her Duel Disk, shooting a quick look over her shoulder to see how Gotam and Willard were doing. Gotam had a tall woman with green hair wielding a staff protecting him, a monster she knew as Caam, Serenity of Gusto. All Willard had was his Fishborg Archer, crouched protectively in front of him with measly 300 defense points. She turned back to Kilik, placing her hand on her deck.
"Draw!" She turned the card over, eyes widening at the sight of what she had pulled. "I drew it! I release my Naturia Cosmobeet, and Advance Summon Naturia Bamboo Shoot!" Her Cosmobeet faded away, and in its place rose a brown and beige lump of enormous bamboo, eyes plaintively looking around in apprehension.
Naturia Bamboo Shoot, Level 5, EARTH Plant, 2000/2000
"Advance Summon?" Kilik asked, talking more to himself than anybody. "She didn't go for a Synchro Summon?"
"Naturia Bamboo Shoot, effect activate!" Hikari called, pointing at Kilik. Her monster sucked in a breath through its mouth, puffing up as a bright green aura surrounded it. Kilik tilted his head, then stepped back with a jolt as something pushed up against the sole of his weathered boot. He looked about him, watching as shoots of long, tall bamboo grew around him from the dead ground.
"And just what the hell is this?" he asked warily, raising an eyebrow.
Hikari smiled grimly. "Bamboo Shoot's monster effect: If I Advance Summon this monster, my opponent is prevented from activating any Magic or Trap cards!"
"No Magic or Trap cards?!" Kilik barked, shocked. Justin allowed himself a satisfied smile, and Taro looked a lot less nervous. "What the hell kind of crap is that, anyway?!" Kilik roared, waving his hands in the air as Hikari let out a sigh of relief. "Are you shitting me?! What the hell!"
"You alright, Kilik?" asked one of the two on the other end of the crater, the one dueling Willard.
"I'm fine!" Kilik yelled, glaring angrily at Hikari. "No Magic or Trap cards… Ridiculous. Are you done yet?"
"I end my turn," Hikari said, nodding.
"Finally. Draw!" Kilik drew forcefully, pulling the card from his Duel Disk with a jerk of the arm. He turned it around, sneering at what he saw. "Well, that's just plain old perfect, isn't it?" he said to himself, revolving the card as he placed it on his Duel Disk. "I summon the Tuner monster, Jurrac Dino!"
"Tuner monster?!" asked Hikari in dismay as squat red dinosaur, face covered with large horns, appeared to join Guiaba.
Jurrac Dino, Level 3 Tuner, FIRE Dinosaur, 1700/800
"Is he going to be able to Synchro Summon?" Justin asked himself. "Destroy Bamboo Shoot?"
But Kilik surprised everyone with his next order. "Jurrac Guaiba, attack the face-down monster now!" His Guiaba raced ahead, flaming jaws gnashing as it raced towards Taro's set monster.
Oh no! thought Hikari, realizing what was going on. He's going to attack Taro with BOTH his monsters!
"Activate Trap!" Taro yelped, one of his cards flipping up. "Shift! This switches your attack to another one of our monsters!" He raised a finger, somewhat desperately yelling: "I choose Bamboo Shoot!" Guaiba changed course, running towards the stronger monster, Bamboo Shoot surprised at the monster's approach.
"Yes! Bamboo Shoot is stronger than Guaiba!" Justin yelled triumphantly. "He'll lose his monster and be unable to Synchro Summon!"
Guaiba crashed into Bamboo Shoot, a fiery explosion resulting that almost pushed Hikari off her feet. Her monster was stronger, so why was she experiencing knockback? She heard a whirring noise, and looked down at her Duel Disk to see its Life readout falling. From 1000 to 800.
"Sorry…" she heard Kilik chuckle as the smoke cleared, revealing him standing there with a monster card held glowing in his hand. "But your little shoots didn't do you any good against the powers of my Jurrac Brachio! By discarding this card, all my Jurrac monsters gain an additional 500 attack points!" Guaiba reared its head, attack power raising to 2200. Dino was stomping its feet, its attack power similar. Hikari watched wide-eyed, shocked. Her field was empty. Her field. Was empty.
"Guaiba's monster effect, activate! When I destroy a monster by battle with this card, I summon any Jurrac monster from my Deck, so long as its attack power isn't any higher than 1700. The one I choose is my Jurrac Ptera!" From the embers rose, upon great flaming wings, a fearsome pterodactyl, opening its long beaklike mouth and letting out a horrid caw.
Jurrac Ptera, Level 3, FIRE Dinosaur, 800/1500
"I can't attack your Geomancer… Not YET, anyway," Kilik sneered at Justin, moving his eyes over to Taro's field. "But, on to what I was going to do NEXT. Jurrac Dino, attack his face-down monster!" Dino lumbered forward, leaping into the air high above Taro's monster. The card flipped up, revealing it to be a weak monster, a white-haired man covered in armor that did nothing against Dino stomping it flat.
Necro Gardna, Level 3, DARK Warrior, 600/1300
"Now that's all cleared up… Your turn," Kilik leered, turning on Hikari again. She raised a hand to her mouth, eyes welling up with tears as she struggled not to break down completely. "Jurrac Ptera, attack her Life Points directly!"
His pterodactyl took to the sky, circling high above Hikari, flapping its wings and cawing out loudly as it released a tornado of flames upon her. Hikari sniffed, raising her arms acceptingly to cover her head.
"I activate Necro Gardna's monster effect!" Hikari looked up in surprise as she heard a clanging sound, and saw that the tornado of flames had been intercepted. Taro's monster was back, but not entirely. It was more like a shadowy remnant of the monster that had just been destroyed.
"Necro Garnda can negate an attack by banishing itself from the Graveyard," Taro added, pulling his monster from his Duel Disk. "Your Battle Phase is over now… You can't attack with anything else." He looked over to Hikari. "You okay, Hikari?"
Hikari nodded gratefully. "Yeah," she said faintly. "I'm… I think I'm fine."
"You won't be." Hikari turned back to see Kilik grinning. He pointed to the face-down card in front of him. "Forgetting something, are we?" he asked. Justin watched the card warily as it flipped up, Taro paling as he realized what it was. "This card is called Urgent Tuning," Kilik explained, relishing every word that damned the three that opposed him. "I couldn't use it with your Bamboo Shoot around, but now that's gone, I'm free to play whatever I like!" The bamboo around him spontaneously caught fire, shards of the stuff flying about in the shockwave of the sudden flare. "And it lets me Synchro Summon in my own Battle Phase!"
"Synchro Summon?! In the Battle Phase?!" Hikari gasped, knowing one of them was about to lose this duel.
"I tune my my Level 3 Jurrac Ptera with my Level 3 Jurrac Dino!" Dino roared, dissolving to form three green rings that flew up into the sky, glowing brightly as they arranged themselves into a cylinder that Ptera flew inside, dissolving into three white stars of light.
Kilik grinned sadistically as he raised a hand to point at this display. "Crashing feet, blazing claws, rend apart your enemies to prove who is the true lord of the era!" There was a blinding flash, Hikari, Justin, amd Taro averting their eyes as something huge was born from the light. "Synchro Summon!" Kilik continued. "Level six, Jurrac Torvosaur!"
Emerging from the light was a huge orange and yellow dinosaur that looked very similar to a tyrannosaurus rex, but its head was longer, narrower, bright red eyes glowing hungrily as it opened its tooth-filled maw to roar loudly, the very sound shaking the landscape.
Jurrac Torvosaur, Level 6 Synchro, FIRE Dinosaur, 2500/1400
"Now… question is… Who should I attack with it?" Kilik asked himself, pacing back and forth as the other three looked on with pale, drawn faces. "Perhaps YOU," he mused, pointing at Justin, "for trying to stop me from attacking? No, no, your monster is still around… Perhaps this fellow over here? You seem to have a lot of effects I'd rather avoid. Attack redirection, negation… Not exactly my cup of tea, if you get me. And you… You shut down my Magic and Trap cards," he went on, turning to Hikari. "Not for very long, but it happened, and I don't want it to happen again…"
Hikari gulped. "Just… Just attack me!" she yelled desperately.
"Hikari!" Justin snapped, horrified.
"No, please! Attack me! Give Taro another chance, please!" Hikari fell to her knees, clutching at her cards, weeping openly now. "Just get it over with, please!" Taro watched her, wide-eyed, silent. "Just me, please, it's all I-"
"Shut up," Kilik drawled. "You've made up my mind already."
Hikari looked up hopefully. "You… you mean you'll-"
"Yeah," Kilik said nonchalantly, shrugging. "I mean, you want this guy to live, I get it… because he somehow has the best chance of turning this around and beating me."
Hikari's face fell. "No," she begged, desperately. "No, that's not what I-"
"Taro, was it?" Kilik called, grinning lazily as he pointed at the stricken Taro. "Jurrac Torvosaur, crush him! Primordial Power!"
"No!" cried Hikari as Torvosaur lumbered ahead, fire gushing from its mouth as it barreled straight for Taro. Taro screamed, turning to run across The Blight, sprinting for all he was worth.
"Help, Hikari, help me!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "Help me, plea-" he was cut off as Jurrac Torvosaur caught up, slamming it's foot down on Taro's shoulders. Taro was forced to the ground, gasping in pain. Torvosaur raised its head, flames licking up from its jaws, and blasted him with a torrent of searing white flames.
Taro: 800 0
With a thunderous bang, a thick bolt of lightning came down to strike Taro where he lay as Torvosaur lifted its foot to return to its master. Taro let out one very piteous moan that was unheard over the roar of the thunder… and was gone.
Hikari covered her mouth in horror. "Taro…" she breathed sharply, tears rolling down her face.
"Aaaaah…" She turned at the contented sigh to see Kilik, chuckling now, his body crackling with electricity. "And to the victor go the spoils," he bragged, raising his Duel Disk to reveal his Life readout rising.
Kilik: 2000 2800
"It's not over yet," Kilik promised the two, turning to Justin. "When Torvosaur inflicts damage to an opponent, I can destroy any monster on the field, so long as that monster's attack power is less than or equal to the damage I inflicted." Justin preemptively lowered his hand towards his Duel Disk, knowing what was about to happen to the only monster they had left. "I destroy the 800 attack point Geomancer of the Ice Barrier!"
Torvosaur opened its mouth, another jet of fire blasting out to vaporize Justin's monster. Justin grunted in surprise as the fire engulfed him, his Life Points falling.
Justin: 1250 850
"I forgot to mention: You take damage equal to half the attack points of whatever I destroy," Kilik added, sneering. "I think that's enough for now… I'll play two cards face-down." He raised a hand, turning it over to gesture rudely at Justin. "Your move, Dead Meat."
Justin scowled, trembling. "How dare you," he began, raising his voice to a yell. "He was just a kid, just a scared-"
"AAAAH!" Justin stopped, turning around to see Willard flying back, crashing into the crater they had sheltered in, ash flying up in a cloud as his stout body crashed into it.
Willard: 400 0
"Willard!" yelled Justin and Gotam simultaneously. Willard struggled to sit up, looking up at Gotam apologetically.
"I… I'm sorry, Gotam," he began weakly, but a flash of lightning cut off anything else, and all that remained of Willard was a black mark upon the earth.
"Willard…" Gotam whispered, jaw trembling with repressed emotion. "You bastards killed him!" he roared, turning on the duelist who had dealt the finishing blow, a buff fellow wearing a leather jacket that was too big for him.
"Hey boss, I only got 400 off fatty! Mind if I join you?" he called out, his Life Points rising to 2200.
"Fuck off, Strindberg! These two are all mine, you know my rule!" Kilik turned back to the crumpled Hikari and the shaking Justin. "Now hurry up! I told you, I don't have all day!"
Justin slowly raised an arm to his Duel Disk, looking to Hikari with worried eyes. "Hikari… are you with me?"
She didn't reply. She just remained on her knees, hands to the ground, staring at it like it held the secret of life. "Hikari?" Justin asked again, growing scared now. "Hikari, please-"
Hikari looked up, distracted. "What? Can't… can't you hear that?" she asked, surprised.
Justin frowned, heart accelerating in concern. "Hikari… there's nothing to…" he trailed off, craning his ear as he did begin to hear something. A high-pitched whirring noise. Kilik had heard it too, turning his head left and right to try and figure out what it was. It was clearly mechanical, whatever it was. But what kind of machinery would be out here in The Blight?
"What the hell's going on over there?" Gotam called, wincing as one of his monsters was brushed aside like refuse. "What the hell are you guys-"
It was then that Justin caught sight of the approaching figure. Bigger than a person, and moving fast across the ash field, far faster than any one person. "Look!" he called, pointing. The group all turned to see the approaching object, and it wasn't long before they realized what it was.
"A D-Wheel?!" Kilik barked, looking suddenly afraid for the first time. "It's not a Cleaner, is it?"
"It's… it's the wrong color…" Hikari realized. "Cleaners are blue and white, that's blue and black…" This was true, and the figure riding the D-Wheel was clearly not a Cleaner; it was smaller, clothes darker than the uniform blue they all wore.
"This oughta be good," Kilik grumbled to himself. "Who the hell managed to get their hands on a D-Wheel in here?" He raised his Duel Disk in front of him, like a shield.
The D-Wheel suddenly turned to the side, decelerating sharply and coming to a halt at the edge of the crater, mere feet from Hikari and Justin. The figure on the motorcycle turned its helmeted head to take them all in, only their thin, tight mouth visible. It wore a baggy dark purple jacket, left sleeve gone, the ragged edge at the shoulder evidence of being torn free, a blue shirt beneath that bore a bright red symbol of a card upon the chest. Its pants were black, bearing many pockets, stretching down to end raggedly just above a sturdy pair of black boots, violet straps holding them onto the figure's feet. It gazed at them from behind a visor of tinted glass, helmet a battered Cleaner model. It was the same style and everything, like a knight's helmet that lacked the mouth guard, but the edges were far more rounded, the entire helmet somehow painted to look gray, with red lines tracing across its surface.
The D-Wheel it sat on bore a smooth countenance, a lack of edges everywhere on the blue-black ensemble. From the back of the seat issued a tall, backward leaning piece of metal, from which the two arms of the D-Wheel attached, the D-Wheeler's hands inside these to hold the handlebars within. It was clearly constructed by some parts from Cleaner D-Wheels, but different, worked on for long periods of time.
The figure reached up, pulling off its helmet to reveal the face of a boy, about Hikari's age, maybe seventeen or eighteen even. Escaping from the helmet, his cobalt blue hair fluttered in the wind that constantly blew across The Blight, highlighted by streaks of red that ran like pieces of straw throughout. He was a little over five and a half feet tall (it was a little hard to judge while he was on the D-Wheel), and of middling build, perhaps a little thin. His gray eyes crawled over all the people assembled, who were staring at him, waiting for who knew what. After taking them all in thoroughly, the eyes paused… and then closed halfway as the boy's face fell into an expression of tired annoyance.
"Okay, come on, guys," he said flatly, voice a touch reedy and considerably petulant. "You're picking on guys like THESE? They barely have enough Life Points to give a Kuriboh a challenge, lay off already, will ya?"
"Hey, fuck you, man!" Kilik yelled, startled and affronted by the bluntness this stranger had brought to the party. "We'll duel whoever we like, and it's none of your business!"
"That's a Jurrac monster, isn't it?" asked the boy, not even acknowledging anything had been said. Kilik fumed at being ignored. "I've heard of you, I think. Kirk, or something-"
"That's KILIK-"
"Thanks, will file that away," the boy assured him, raising a hand for silence, Kilik complying due to his falling into stammering anger. "Hey, are these guys giving you a hard time?" he asked, turning his attention to the stunned Gotam.
"Uh…" Gotam was taken aback. He quickly nodded, regaining his composure. "They… They already defeated our friends," he admitted, his frown returning with the remembrance of what he had just lost.
The D-Wheeler turned his head expectantly towards Kilik. "Got anything to say for yourself on that matter?" he asked shortly.
Kilik stammered out, "H-h-hey, all we're trying to do is survive in this shithole! Who do you think you are to judge us, huh? Who cares if we beat a couple people for Life Points, these guys weren't going to last long anyway!" He was furious now, glaring hard at the boy atop the D-Wheel.
The boy nodded. "I see, I see, I see… Okay, I think I have enough perspective to make a decision on the matter…" He raised a finger, pointing it at Kilik. "I really, really, REALLY don't like you very much…" He raised a leg over one side of his D-Wheel, stepping off it as he grabbed a round black metal slab from the console upon it, attaching it to his arm. With a clench of the fist, the Duel Disk kicked to life, a glowing purple blade of light appearing before it. This caught everyone's attention yet again. Only Cleaners had Duel Disks that were of any current model, certainly not regular Duelists like this boy. "And…" he went on, drawing five cards from the Deck within the disk, "I'm going to help these guys… Because of the aforementioned not liking you much." He raised the Duel Disk in front of him, glaring at the Duelist who had bested Willard. "You're first," he said coldly.
There was utter silence, and then Hikari asked, rather timidly, "Who ARE you?"
The D-Wheeler looked over his shoulder at her, smiling slightly for the first time. "The name's Yuichi," he told her. "Kawasaki Yuichi." He turned back to face the duelist Kilik had called Strindberg. "DUEL!"
Yuichi (3000) vs Strindberg (2200)
"He has 3000 Life Points…" Justin observed, amazed. "I haven't had Life Points that high in three months…"
"I summon Wastewalker Pitch in attack mode!" Strindberg began, reassurance entering his voice. This was a duel, something he was comfortable with. In front of him rose a monster that was a crouching bundle of shadows, fingers long and capped with thin, shiny claws.
Wastewalker Pitch, Level 4, DARK Fiend, 1400/500
"Wastewalker Pitch's monster effect! By discarding one Magic card, I summon another Wastewalker monster from my hand, but it's banished when it leaves the field! I discard my Painful Return card to summon the Tuner monster Wastewalker Blak!" This monster was similar to Pitch, but instead of crouching it was a tall, thin apparition, red eyes gleaming out from the dark and murky depths that made up its body.
Wastewalker Blak, Level 1 Tuner, DARK Fiend, 500/200
"I'm Tuning my Level 4 Wastewalker Pitch with my Level 1 Wastewalker Blak! Synchro Summon! Level 5, Wastewalker Shambler!" From the blast of light emerged a tentacle monstrosity, a zombie that stared slack-jawed at the unimpressed Yuichi, slimy tentacles protruding from its body like a cloak.
Wastewalker Shambler, Level 5 Synchro, DARK Zombie, 2100/600
"Wastewalker Shambler's effect!" Stringberg called out, discarding another card from his hand. "By discarding my Stop Defense card, I force you to send a card from your hand to the Graveyard! Hahahahaha!"
"Am I supposed to think that's going to hurt me?" asked Yuchi bluntly. Strindberg stopped laughing, looking in confusion at Yuichi as the boy discarded a card from his hand. "Last thing I care about is you laughing at how oh so clever you are," he muttered cynically. "Just get on with it already." Strindberg looked with uncertainty at Kilik, who was growling in annoyance.
"You know what, little Yuichi-kun?" Kilik asked, sneering. "You're really starting to piss me off-"
"Trust me, it's mutual," Yuichi assured him.
"… Oh, that does it, I was just going to send Sato at you as well, but now? Now I'M dueling you. We ALL are," Kilik seethed, raising his Duel Disk threateningly.
"Feel free," Yuichi said, smirking. "I'll even let you keep those monsters of yours if you like."
Kilik paused. Strindberg and Sato looked at their leader, clearly shocked. Sato cleared his throat. "Um, boss, not for nothin' but… I think this might be a trap."
"Oh, shut up!" Kilik barked, turning on his friend and shaking a fist irately. "There's THREE of us and we've ALL taken out punks better than this squirt on our own. Man up and get your ass over here," he snarled, walking towards Yuichi threateningly. "I don't care if you DO have a D-Wheel, or a better Duel Disk, they'll BOTH be mine when I wipe out and take all those Life Points of yours! Sato, you're up! DUEL!"
Yuichi(3000) vs Strindberg(2200)/Sato(1300)/Kilik(2800)
"Do you want my…" began Gotam, a little lost with his opponent now gone.
"No, but thank you," Yuichi assured him, watching Kilik's two monsters trample across the ash to join their owner as he squared up against a new opponent. "All of you stay back, I'll handle these guys."
"But… But we can help-" began Hikari worriedly, beginning to walk forward to stand by Yuichi.
"No, no, really, I got this," Yuichi assured her, a touch more forcefully this time. "You all just sit back and watch as I give these gentlemen a good thrashing, alright?"
"He thinks he'll thrash US?" asked Strindberg incredulously, confidence strengthened by his increased numbers. "The hell does he think he can do to THREE of us?"
"Speak for yourself, that Indian guy actually dropped my Life Points fairly low," gripped Sato. "I swear, Kilik, if I lose because of this, I'll-"
"You'll what? Get in my shoes with the rest of the ash here?" asked Kilik derisively. "This asshole stands no chance. Make your damn move, Sato."
"My turn. Draw!" Sato observed his cards before selecting one. "I summon my Weirwood Knight, in attack mode!" A great warrior clad in armor made entirely of thick oaken wood rose from the ground, an autumnal limb his lance.
Weirwood Knight, Level 4, EARTH Warrior, 1200/1400
"When this card is Normal Summoned, I can summon any Level 2 or lower Beast-Type monster from my hand! I summon the Tuner monster, Unicorn Familiar!" A small, gremlin-like creature now appeared, a long golden horn growing from its eyeless head.
Unicorn Familiar, Level 2 Tuner, LIGHT Beast, 0/1000
"I'm Tuning my Level 4 Weirwood Knight to my Level 2 Unicorn Familiar! Synchro Summon! Level six, Redwood Troll!" A scarlet ogre loomed up, towering over Yuichi and casting a shadow over him, the boy looking up into the single eye of the log-totting giant.
Redwood Troll, Level 6 Synchro, EARTH Beast-Warrior, 2300/2200
"Redwood Troll's monster effect!" proclaimed Sato. "Each turn, I can reveal a random card in my opponent's hand, and then place that card either on the top or bottom of that player's Deck!"
Redwood Troll opened its one eye wide, the sphere glowing with red light as one of the four cards Yuichi still held lit up with the same strange glow. Above Yuichi's head, a red-tinged version of the card appeared, much larger than in real life to allow Sato to read it.
"Black Horn of Heaven," he read, narrowing his eyes. "Counter Trap. Negate the Special Summon of any monster… Well, can't let you keep that. Place it on the bottom of your Deck!" Yuichi frowned, taking the card and sliding it underneath his deck inside the Duel Disk's casing.
"It doesn't look good…" Justin commented to Hikari. The two had walked over to Gotam, joining him in worriedly watching the ongoing duel. "He's lost two cards from his hand already, and he hasn't even had a turn yet!"
"I play one card face-down," Sato continued. "That ends my turn."
"Not quite, Sato," Kilik corrected, hitting a button on his Duel Disk. "I reveal a Trap card, Tuning Collector!" His trap flipped up, and it along with Redwood Troll and Wastewalker Shambler glowed with a red light. "When my opponents control 2 or more Synchro Monsters, I can Synchro Summon using a monster on my field and a monster in my Graveyard!"
"Grave Synchro?!" demanded Gotam. "This guy… he's way too powerful a Duelist!"
"At least there's one drawback to his Trap card," Justin chipped in. "Whatever monster Tuning Collector summons can't attack, and it's destroyed at the end of Kilik's next turn."
"I use the Jurrac Guaiba on my field, and the Jurrac Dino in my Graveyard!" Dino rose from a circle of purple light in the earth, splitting into the three green rings that Guiaba jumped into. "Blaze within a dying world, oh great monstrosity that crushes friend and foe alike! Synchro Summon! Level seven, Jurrac Magnosaur!"
What followed was a monster even larger than Redwood Troll, even larger than Jurrac Torvosaur. It towered above the field, long spiked tail blazing with white flame, raising a fire-wreathed head to roar a challenge at Yuichi.
Jurrac Magnosaur, Level 7 Synchro, FIRE Dinosaur, 2700/2200
"Wow, you just couldn't wait for my turn to finish up, huh?" asked Yuichi. "Had to show off."
Kilik did not burst out this time. This time he gave that malicious grin that he had when springing his Urgent Tuning Trap card. "You may think you're safe now, but when Magnosaur is Synchro Summoned, I destroy any other Jurrac monster I have, and that monster's attack power comes out of YOUR Life Points!"
"What?!" demanded Yuichi, legitimately taken aback. Magnosaur reached its mighty head down, clamping its jaws into the neck of Torvosaur. The beast howled in pain, but was swallowed up in fire, flowing up into the great dinosaur's mouth like a reverse waterfall of hell. Magnosaur then turned its head and opened fire (quite literally) on Yuichi.
Yuichi: 3000 500
"Yuichi!" Hikari yelled out, horrified to see their savior taking this much abuse. The fire flickered out, leaving Yuichi inside a small crater within the crater, smoke rising slowly from his body as he lowered the arms he had crossed to protect himself. He was breathing hard, gasping for air that scorched his lungs painfully.
Kilik clapped slowly, chuckling growing to an outright cackle. "Oh, you're so precious, little Yuichi-kun," he said with glee, clapping his hands together harder. "You haven't even moved and we've reduced you to a mere 500 Life Points! Aren't we just the greatest, you little pile of-"
"Shut the hell up already," Yuichi interrupted, harshly. His eyes were no longer half-shut, lidded with his irritation. They were wide open now, eyebrows turned down as he glared viciously at Kilik. "You son of a bitch," he hissed, moving his hand to his Duel Disk. "Do you know who you're screwing with right now, Kilik? Do you?"
Kilik frowned now, bravado deflating as he was faced with this sudden transformation in the boy. Yuichi had been slouched, hand on a hip as he waited for his turn to come around. Now he stood crouched, free fist clenched as he glared at Kilik with fire in his eyes, teeth grinding against each other in his tight jaw. "I'll make sure you suffer for this, Kilik," Yuichi promised vehemently, moving his hand to his Duel Disk as he savagely drew a card from within.
You go ahead, kid, thought Sato, eyes flicking down to his face-down card. You attack any of us, my Sakuretsu Armor Trap card will stop you dead in your tracks. It destroys any monster that attacks, so if you even try anything, you'll lose everything you have!
Yuichi selected a card, throwing it down onto his Duel Disk blade, circuitry marks sparking within the hologram. "I summon Baleful Blackguard – Sepulchral Sword!" A mass of shadows coalesced on the ground in front of him, and from it rose a tall figure. It was insubstantial, as if a shadow had taken to its feet to walk with the one who bore it. It wore plates of black armor, floating atop its body strangely. Its most noticeable feature was a long sword of violet metal, clutched in its phantom fists. It stared out hollowly with the pale blue wisp lights it had for eyes, face unmoving and featureless.
Baleful Blackguard – Sepulchral Sword, Level 4, DARK Warrior, 1700/1100
Yuichi continued, sliding a card into the back of his Duel Disk. "Next, I use the power of my Rendering Tuning Magic card; it summons any Tuner monster currently in my hand. Of course," he interrupted himself, pulling a card from his hand as he looked irritably at Stringberg and Sato, "I'm only holding one; you guys have stripped me for options a bit. I summon the Tuner monster Baleful Blackguard – Menace Mantle!"
From another lump of shadow rose a tattered piece of cloth, a black cape floating in midair. It too possessed shadow-stuff, but only barely, small glimpses of the darkness floating beneath the cloth, the same wisp-lights within.
Baleful Blackguard – Menace Mantle, Level 3 Tuner, DARK Warrior, 300/300
Yuichi closed his eyes, gesturing with a hand as Menace Mantle split into the green tuning rings. "I tune my level 4 Sepulchral Sword with the level 3 Menace Mantle!" Sepulchral Sword dissolved away, wisp-eyes splitting into four stars that drifted through the air, entering the glowing rings. "Rise from the shadows, strike back against those who hurt those you would protect! Rise and fight! Synchro Summon! Level seven! Baleful Blackguard – Vengeance Vanguard!"
With a flash of lightning in the violet sky above and a clap of thunder, his monsters disappeared in a flash of light. From out of the sky fell a spinning object, whirling through the air until it struck the ground, and the points of a black-handled gold trident sunk into the ash. From the contact point, darkness spread, pitch-black pooling about the trident head like a puddle. It grew larger and larger, reaching several feet in diameter.
And then from the shadows rose a hand. Coated in black armor filigreed in dingy silver, the claw-tipped gauntlet closed around the trident with a clash. The arm tensed, and the rest of the being followed. Completely covered in armor, all that could be seen of the powerful-looking monster beneath the imposing armor was a small window in the helmet. There floated, seething within the helmet like black flames, nothing but dark shadows, undetailed but for the burning blue flames that floated within the eye sockets. Pulling its trident free, the monster spun it one-handed, whirling it above its head with a flourish before slamming it down, the end of the handle striking ominously against the earth.
Baleful Blackguard – Vengeance Vanguard, Level 7 Synchro, DARK Warrior, 2400/1700
The three opponents had become more and more unnerved as the monster was summoned, its' frightening and slow appearance sending shivers up their spine, but at seeing its attack power, they relaxed. Kilik even sneered a bit again.
"You fuckin' brat," he said, shaking his head. "Your monster may be a bit more powerful than Redwood Troll and Wastewalker Shambler, but it's no match for my Jurrac Magnosaur!" As if to prove his point, Magnosaur bellowed loudly. Vengeance Vanguard didn't flinch.
Yuichi shrugged, hands in the air. "Yeah, I know. Not for much longer though. Haven't you guys heard of a monster effect before?" he asked sarcastically.
"What's Vengeance Vanguard's effect?" asked Strindberg guardedly.
"Each turn, I can target any one of your monsters," Yuichi explained, eyes moving from Wastewalker Shambler, to Redwood Troll, to Jurrac Magnosaur. "And that monster will lose 300 attack points for every time a monster's been sent to the Graveyard since your last Standby Phase for the rest of this turn."
"What the hell?" Sato asked, eyes widening. Kilik's were as well.
"Shit," he hissed, looking around at his fellows. "We've been sending so many monsters to the Graveyard I've forgotten how many!"
"Exactly," Yuichi agreed, as a portal of black shadow appeared above Vengeance Vanguard. From it floated-
"Menace Mantle?!" demanded Kilik. "The hell, you didn't play a card to revive it!"
"Don't worry," Yuichi assured Kilik as Menace Mantle descended towards Vengeance Vanguard. "That's just one of the aspects of my deck." Menace Mantle settled about Vengeance Vanguard's shoulders, reaching around to clasp in front of his armored neck.
"Is Menace Mantle… attached to Vengeance Vanguard now?" asked Justin curiously.
"I don't know," Hikari admitted. "I don't know what he's doing with it."
"Look!" Justin amended, pointing. "Vengeance Vanguard has more attack points now!" The others looked, and indeed Vengeance Vanguard's attack score was rising. It rose from 2400 to 2700.
"Baleful Blackguard Tuner monsters transfer their attack points to whatever monster they're used to Synchro Summon," Yuichi explained. Kilik snarled in irritation.
"Kilik, it's as strong as your monster now," Sato said worriedly. "It's tied for strongest monster on the field!"
"Thanks Sato, I can do math!" Kilik yelled.
"The monster I'm targeting…" Yuichi began, slowly raising a finger and pointing, "is your Jurras Magnosaur, Kilik!"
"Eh?" Kilik grunted incredulously. "The hell… I haven't had a Standby Phase yet, you idiot! Magnosaur won't lose any attack points!"
"Not to mention Magnosaur can't attack and will be destroyed at Kilik's End Phase anyway," Gotam added, concerned now. "It makes the least sense."
"You HAVE had a Standby Phase, Kilik," Yuichi disagreed. "Several, I wager. I think these guys here can attest to that. Or have you forgotten we're playing under the Battle Royale system here in The Blight?"
"What are…" Kilik began, before he visibly dropped his mouth open. It was almost comical. "It… It counts their monsters I destroyed?!" he demanded, pointing at Hikari and Justin.
"Their monsters, your monsters, my monsters, and the monsters of the ones you killed!" Yuichi clarified. Vengeance Vanguard raised its trident, which began to glow with a white light. "At this point, I activate the effect of Baleful Blackguard – Sepulchral Sword in my Graveyard!" A dark portal appeared yet again, and the sword wielded by Yuichi's monster rose from its depths.
"By banishing this monster that's been used as Synchro Material from the Graveyard, I can now cause ALL my opponents monsters to lose attack points when one would," he said, almost cut off by Kilik's incredulous yell. The sword suddenly jerked through the air, splitting halfway along the blade. The hilt and blade's remnants flew towards Redwood Troll, digging into its knee, the monster groaning in pain. The rest of the blade flew to slide into Shambler with a squelch, the monster shrieking, tentacles writhing as the sword glowed with a violet light.
As Vengeance Vanguards trident glowed, transparent images appeared around it. Two were immediately recognizable: They were the monsters Yuichi had used to Synchro Summon Vangaurd, Sepulchral Sword and Menace Mantle. Others were the monsters of Sato and Strindberg, floating through the air and glaring daggers at their owners. Even Kilik's own Dinosaurs were in there. Justin nodded with recognition as he saw his Geomancer in the mix, floating beside Hikaris Bamboo Shoot. With a pang Hikari noticed Taro's Necro Gardna, floating towards the front of the throng.
"I count nine times a monster has hit the Graveyard since your last turn started, Kilik," Yuichi stated emphatically. "That means all your monsters will be losing 2700 attack points!" The silhouette horde streamed forward, Necro Gardna leading the charge. The monsters all streamed together, flowing into one flow of bright blue light, the white hair of Taro's monster at its tip. The ray pierced Magnosaur, the beast freezing in place, fires dying down. The sword fragments buried in the monsters of Sato and Strindberg glowed with the same light, and the three watched in horror as their monsters' attack points flew down to zero.
Yuichi's frown slowly turned up into a smirk, satisfaction in his eyes as he appraised the three horrified opponents before him. "Not so fun for you out here now, is it?" he asked. "Not now I've brought you down to this level, where I can end your life in the space of a second-"
"Fuck you, kid!" Kilik roared. "This only lasts one turn, you smug fuck, and you can't take us all down!"
Yuichi raised a hand, eyes widening in false surprise. "Let me FINISH, Kilik, my god," he griped. "As I was saying… Remember how my Menace Mantle transferred its attack points to my Vanguard?"
Kilik looked over the Vanguard, taking in the tattered cape it now possessed while Sato and Strindberg exchanged fearful glances, wondering which of them would be taking what was essentially a direct attack. "Yeah, so?" Kilik asked.
"My Tuner monsters don't just transfer their attack points," Yuichi explained. "They transfer their effects as well. Their effects aren't worth much on such low-power monsters, but slap it on something like my Vanguard here… Menace Mantle has transferred the ability to attack every monster on the field once each!"
"What?!" the three yelled, all in unison. Justin, Hikari and Gotam were only a second behind, though they were shouting in mixtures of surprise and relief. Vengeance Vanguard swept its cape out behind it, eyes gleaming with light as it stared down the drained enemies.
"Mr. Yuichi, please, no-" began Strindberg.
"Shut up! Shut up!" yelled Kilik. "Or did you forget we have two face-down cards?" he asked, voice low enough to reach just to his companions. Sato remembered his Trap then, and sighed, knowing they were worrying for nothing. Vengeance Vanguard wouldn't last the turn.
"I enter the Battle Phase, and activate a Quick-Play Magic!" Yuichi called, playing the final card in his hand. "Fly, my Anti-Magic Arrows!" A flash of light in the sky could be seen, and a hail of arrows suddenly rained from the sky. With a flurry of thocks, the arrows slammed into the set cards Sato and Kilik owned, sparks playing over the cards.
Kilik looked down in horror. "What the… What did you DO?!" he demanded, a touch hysterically.
"When activated at the start of the Battle Phase, these arrows stop my opponents from using and Magic OR Trap cards!" Yuichi yelled, raising a hand. Vengeance Vanguard, attack Wastewalker Shambler! Revenge Retaliate!"
"No, no!" Strindberg yelled, as Vanguard leaped forward, flying over the ashy ground and kicking up clouds of ash as it swung its trident, cleaving through Shambler, straight down the middle, black lightning exploding from the split. Strindberg screamed as the lightning exploded, throwing him back onto the ground behind him.
"Attack Redwood Troll! Revenge Retaliate!" Sato stepped back, unable to even speak as Vanguard darted like a shot to stab its trident into his Troll's large belly, the creature exploding, smoke engulfing Sato and hiding him from view.
Kilik stammered helplessly as he took step after step back, eyes wide, entire body tremoring with fright. Slowly, the head of Vengeance Vanguard turn to look at him, and he let out a wail of fear as he saw that the wisp-lights within its helmet were now a burning red.
"Look, Yuichi… I'm sorry… All of you!" he yelled, turning to call to the three who stood slack-jawed at the spectacle. "I'm sorry!" A flare of lightning on one side, and Strindberg was gone. "I, I promise I won't ever attack duelists again, I swear I won't!" A flash of lightning on the other side, no Sato. "Please, just… Let's just call the whole duel off, alright? You go one way, I go another? Deal?"
"You want me to let you go, huh?" asked Yuichi. He was clearly pissed at the suggestion. "You just stroll in here, beat the tar out of these guys, kill their friends?" He shook his head. "You have a lot of nerve-"
"PLEASE!" Kilik screamed, begging desperately as he fell to his knees, shoulders shaking as he tried to hold back tears of terror. "PLEASE, I'll do anything, just let me leave!"
Yuichi looked down at the supplicating form of Kilik, eyes hooded as he contemplated the wretched boy before him. He took a deep breath, sighing as he rolled his eyes. "Oh, fine," he muttered, turning away from Kilik to walk back towards his D-Wheel. "You can leave. Get the hell out of here.
Kilik collapsed on the ground, gasping with relief. "Oh, thank you, Yuichi," he yelled, over the cries of outrage from Justin and Gotam. "I swear, I'll change my ways, I'll-"
"Damn right you will," Yuichi interrupted, yelling harshly over his shoulder. "I'm making sure of that. You've never had your Life Points in the gutter, have you?" He jerked his thumb at the other three. "These guys live in fear every day that some asshole like you will come along, and take away their life… all that they have left in this god-forsaken place!"
He shook his head, walking to Kilik's kneeling form and bending down, looking him in his confused eyes. "I really think you could do… with walking a mile in their shoes."
Kilik went white. "No," he said simply, barely believing what he was hearing. "No, please, Yuichi, you said-"
"Vengeance Vanguard! Attack Jurrac Magnosaur!" Yuichi called to his monster, standing up and looking back to it. It had been standing perfectly still, awaiting orders till that moment. It spun its trident, leaping into the air, looking down on the diminished dinosaur and the screaming Kilik. "Revenge… Retaliate!"
With a final flourish, Vengeance Vanguard drew back its arm, and let the trident fly. It speared straight through the chest of Magnosaur. The beast didn't even roar, it just vanished. The trident kept going, and hit the rising Kilik in the chest in an explosion of black lightning. He let out a strangled roar of pain as he was sent flying back, tumbling over the ashy ground to come to a stop almost fifty feet away.
Strindberg: 2200 0
Sato: 1300 0
Kilik: 2800 100
"Better find a Life Point card before noon tomorrow!" Yuichi yelled back, Kilik gasping and coughing as he clutched at his chest, smoke rising from his body in great gouts. "I trust you can figure out why!" Vengeance Vanguard flickered out of existence, and Yuichi looked down at his Duel Disk to see the numbers on it flying up as the blade deactivated.
Yuichi: 500 4000
"I'm sorry you guys didn't manage to get any of their Life Points," he said casually to the remaining three as he walked back to his D-Wheel, fishing in one of his many pockets. "But this may help." He pulled a card from his pocket, sliding it into his Duel Disk. "Activate Rain of Mercy," he said before they could react, and a blue glow suffused the Duel Disks of all four that were assembled.
"A rare Life Point card…?" asked Gotam with wonder, looking down at his Duel Disk as his Life Points started to increase. "You want to use this… for us?"
"Don't mention it," Yuichi said simply. "I saved it for something exactly like this."
Gotam: 500 1500
Justin: 850 1850
Hikari: 800 1800
Yuichi: 4000 5000
"Thank… thank you so much," Hikari said, not sure what to say, feeling the thanks was inadequate.
"Well, so much for not mentioning it," Yuichi quipped, Hikari laughing nervously as he pointed at the figure of Kilik, staggering away towards the south. "He probably won't screw with you now he's lost his lackeys and has so little Life left, but just in case, you better take these." He reached into his pocket again, pulling out three more cards and tossing them to Justin, who caught them on reflex, almost dropping them in surprise.
"Are… are you sure?" he asked, Gotam peering over his shoulder with wide eyes to see Red Medicine, Goblin's Secret Remedy, and even Soul of the Pure. "I mean… what if you need these?"
"I have 5000 Life Points," Yuichi replied realistically. "I think you need them more than I do." He looked back at the crater, frowning. "How many did you lose?" he asked. His voice was less flat now, and he made eye contact with Gotam now, expression guarded, but sympathetic.
Gotam hung his head. "Two," he said sadly. "It's all my fault. We should have seen the bolts when they got hit by the noon damage-"
"Hey, hey, hey," Yuichi interrupted, raising a hand. "If it's anyone's fault, it's mine for not getting here a minute earlier. Perhaps I could have saved them too."
"You've done MORE than enough," Hikari assured him, reaching out to shake his hand. He took it awkwardly, gripping it with a very tilted wrist. "I'm Hikari," she said, deciding to ignore it. "These are Justin and Gotam. Thank you, for everything, really."
Yuichi avoided her eyes. "Er, no trouble, really, it wasn't. I'm sorry I can't give you more Life Point cards, I have to save what I have left, you know, emergencies, and if I find more guys like you."
He cleared his throat suddenly, turning back to his D-Wheel. "Which reminds me, I really should be going," he said brusquely, picking his helmet up off the dash of the bike and replacing his Duel Disk. "Places to be, you know."
Well, uh…" Hikari began. "You could…come with us…?" she asked, looking to Gotam for confirmation, which he gave with a swift nod. "I mean, if you don't want to be by yourself out here, Yuichi-senpai-"
"Senpai? Oh, GOD, don't call me that," Yuichi interrupted, looking up in alarm. "I can't be more than a year older than you. Uh, no, I don't really think I should. I mean, this thing only carries one, maybe two. Besides, you don't want me along."
"No, we kinda do," Justin assured him, chuckling.
Yuichi smiled humorlessly. "Right. But no, thanks. I'm good in a jam, terrible company, really, you don't want to walk for hours around me. Besides," he went on, sliding the helmet over his head as he sat on the D-Wheel again. "I've got shit to do."
"Like what?" asked Hikari curiously, as Yuichi twisted the throttle, kicking the bike into gear.
"Nothing much," Yuichi replied, placing a foot on the side petal. "I'm trying to find a way out of this place." He twisted the throttle again, and shot off, ash billowing up behind him in a plume as he drove away into the northwest.
Diary of Kawasaki Yuichi
Day 193
Fought that Kilik guy I wrote about back on Day 141. I'd only heard of the guy before, had a reputation for going around with his gang picking on weaker duelists to take what little Life Points they had. He'd already taken out two of them by the time I got there… If only I could have gotten the D-Wheel to go quicker, I could have saved them. Did get the other three out okay. Almost lost… for a shithead Kilik packs a hell of a punch. He's at just 100 Life now, may be gone by tomorrow. May be better if he was.
Three I saved seemed alright. Didn't seem like they knew anything, they're just trying to survive. At least they still seemed okay after seeing their friends vaporized in front of them. Everyone's tougher now. I remember back in the first few days when people didn't know what the hell was going on (still barely do, really). Nobody had any memories for shit and they were in the middle of a blasted hellhole. I know I've said this already in previous pages, but I don't know how complete this diary will be by the time this is all over. I'm missing the pages for days 82, 146 and 158, and of course I didn't write any pages from day 23 all the way to 67. Even this page may be gone eventually.
Hopefully I can reach this village by day after tomorrow. I really need to find a good map of The Blight, if one even exists, which I doubt. I might try to map it myself if the village proves it to be a dead end, though I don't know if it'll help; The Blight always looks the same wherever you go.
"Dr. Morgan?"
Aaron Morgan raised his attention from the pile of handwritten papers he was poring over, pen coming to rest in his dark, leathery hand. "Yes?" he asked, deep voice a touch wheezy as he sat back in his chair, pulling the reading glasses off his nose. His doctor had told him that sitting hunched in his chair was bad for his lungs, but it was old habit now; he had always hunkered over his work since the time he was in middle school in the States, and in over five decades that hadn't changed.
"The results from Day 193 are in. Four fatalities, all in the same scuffle."
"Really?" Morgan asked with interest, taking the offered stack of papers from the secretary, a woman of about thirty years of age who went by the name of Jan Elderberry, a slim woman with bobbed blonde hair and no time for anyone who would impede her job. "Been a while since we had them in those numbers. Ah, yes, Yamaguchi Kilik again? He HAS been active lately."
"Not for much longer, I think," Jan offered, pointing down the paper. "He managed to find a Life Point card, but he's still only at 300. He may not last the night."
Morgan squinted at the papers, donning his glasses once more. "Really? He's one of the more brutal mid-range duelists, who got him so low- Ah, yes, our Mr. Kawasaki."
"Responsible for the fatalities of 2398 and 4031," she added. "He let the others go. Didn't appreciate Kilik's tactics, from what I understand. You know how hard it is to get good audio of him now."
"Yes… Such a shame, too, he's such an interesting talker, our Mr. Kawasaki," he lamented, looking down the list. "What's this raise him to, do you reckon?"
Jan frowned a moment before what Morgan asked connected. "Oh, in the ranking? I should think somewhere between eighth and seventh in The Blight? He's the highest-ranked duelist in his current area, that's for certain."
"For such a splendid duelist, you think he would be higher."
"Well, he lets so many go without taking their Life Points away. I was surprised he let Kilik go at all. He took out his lackeys."
"I have a hypothesis," Morgan replied nonchalantly.
Jan looked up from the clock she was readjusting in its place on the mantle. "Really? Do tell."
He shook a finger, sliding his glasses back up his nose, straightening the sweater vest he wore over his shirt. "No, no, not until I'm certain. But I will say, if I'm right… that's quite interesting if he's one of our intended targets."
"I heard targets? Have you found one yet?" A new voice, coming from behind the two. One that was younger, raspier.
Morgan turned in his chair, smiling kindly at the boy in the doorway from the balcony. "Ah, Benga, so glad you could join us." He held up the paper, gesturing to Yuichi's name with his pen. "It's nothing definite, but I think we might have."
Benga stepped forward, taking the paper. He was small for his seventeen years, standing only at five feet four inches. His hair was wild standing out from his head in large spikes, a dark crimson shot through with shocks of white, his head resembling an explosion more than hair. He looked wild with his small, wiry body, face shrewd and sharp, eyebrows narrow over large eyes with beady black irises at their cores. He wore a loose tunic of teal, sky blue thread embroidered about the sleeves in intricate patterns, wearing this over brown pants.
"Kawasaki Yuichi…" he said to himself, grinning dangerously, sharp teeth glinting. As he examined the paper, the sleeve of his right arm slipped down his arm, exposing his forearm to the light coming through the large bay windows of the office. It revealed there a sort of birthmark, or possibly tattoo. It was the same scarlet as Benga's hair, traced perfectly upon his skin: A mark traced in the shape of a dragon's front claw.
